| 29. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the Nifal perfect nakhonu {נָכ֣וֹנוּ | nā-kho-nû} ‘are prepared,’ indicating a completed action with enduring effect. The prepositional phrase laletsim {לַלֵּצִ֣ים | la-le-țîm} ‘for scorners’ marks the recipients of the judgments. Shefatim {שְׁפָטִ֑ים | šə-fa-ṭîm} ‘judgments’ functions as the direct object, while the waw-conjunction u- prefixed mahalumot {וּ֝מַהֲלֻמוֹת | u-ma-ha-lu-môt} ‘and stripes’ introduces a parallel object clause. The second prepositional phrase legev {לְגֵ֣ו | lə-gev} ‘for the back’ likewise assigns the recipient of the stripes, with kesilim {כְסִילִֽים | kə-si-lîm} ‘fools’ specifying the group. This parallelism and chiastic construction reinforce the matched consequences for both scorners and fools. |